That Thing in the Basement
by KingdomOfThomond
Summary: Engineer found something in the basement of the BLU base. But things start going downhill when he gets Medic onboard.
1. The Thing

**A/N** Sorry that I haven't posted anything around here for quite some time: an apprenticeship has taken up quite a bit of time, and I've been self-betaing another fic of mine that needs it. So here's a little something to make up for that.

* * *

Deep within the BLU base, where the rats lived and the most intrepid dared to go, Engineer and Medic were staring at the thing before them. A blob of grotesque, bloated purple flesh hung from the ceiling. Acidic saliva dripped from the fangs and dripped into a hole in the floor, where the saliva had dissolved part of the concrete. A small pile of rats' bones, almost dissolved by the saliva, was falling into the hole.

Engineer fired his shotgun at the thing, which made green blood spurt out briefly before the wound healed.

"Ah told ya that Ah tried shootin' at it, and that's what happened." claimed Engineer, in an exasperated tone.

"Ze regenerative effects are quite interesting. Vere zere any more of zese things?" enquired Medic, sounding like he was going to have quite a bit of fun very shortly.

"Yeah, this area's flooded with 'em. Dunno where they all came from. Whadda ya gonna do, doc?"

"For now, I vould like to take this thing away for experimentation. It should be very interesting."

Engineer looked at Medic.

"Surely ya don't want me ta get it? I'm the shrimp of the team!" he exclaimed.

"Of course not, Herr Engineer; I vill send Heavy down. But tell me…" Medic's eyes pierced Engineer.

"Yeah?" Engineer shifted uncomfortably.

"Between the three of us - Heavy, you, and myself - no-vone must know. Not Sniper, not Soldier, not Miss Pauling, not even _Her_, the evil voman who made us fight RED after ve defeated Gray Mann. Understand?"

Engineer nodded, muttering "Yep."

"Very good zhen. I vill find you vhen I need you again, Herr Engineer. See you tomorrow in ze battle."

Medic strolled off, humming Bach. Engineer watched him for a few seconds, then turned towards the thing.

What is this, Engineer thought, and where did it come from? Would it be dangerous to him and the rest of the team? Maybe, as it ate meat and could dissolve concrete. Could it be incorporated into a weapon? Best leave that to Medic.

Engineer shook his head to clear these thoughts. Best leave this thing in Medic's psychopathic hands. Best leave it to Medic.

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**A/N** Sorry that this is so short, but more chapters should be coming, when they come. Please review, as they are really useful.


	2. Biological Investigation

After battle the following day, Medic was busy examining the creature in his surgery. He was absolutely fascinated by it; no matter how badly he cut it, the wound would always regenerate. The German considered inflicting multiple serious wounds, although he decided against this before he finished testing – Heavy had been unhappy enough getting this creature, and to ask him to get another would probably not be in Medic's best interests.

Sighing, Medic decided to stop cutting the creature. Shooting it again would not be necessary, as Engineer had demonstrated perfectly what would happen, although the creature had simply grown replacement flesh around Engineer's buckshot rather than trying to eject it. This should be true of any other bullets and shrapnel. Besides, gunshots would attract unwanted attention from the German's teammates, who would stop at pretty much nothing to save their Medic.

Medic looked around his surgery and saw Pyro pass the surgery through the frosted glass in the doors. This gave Medic an idea. Taking a Bunsen burner from a cupboard, Medic connected it to a gas tap near the creature and lit the burner. Medic's sadistic side was obsessed by the flame, although he rarely used fire as it was better off in the hands of the unstable Pyro.

Medic picked up the Bunsen at the base, and carefully moved it closer to the creature. The creature whined, and shifted it's mass away from the flame. Medic stopped. This reaction from the creature had surprised Medic, as the creature had never even flinched when he had cut into it. Medic then moved the flame closer to the creature, which whined even louder. When the flame touched the creature, the flesh sizzled and died, shrinking as it did so. The smell was terrible.

Medic stopped burning the creature. He expected the creature to regenerate, but it did not, and Medic had thus detected it's primary weakness. This was jotted down in a notebook, and the Bunsen was turned off.

After examining the creature's regenerative abilities, Medic looked at the creature's saliva glands. These were fairly large sacks in the creature's mouth. Medic, knowing that the saliva was acidic enough to eat its way through concrete, slit open a small hole in one of the glands. Saliva flowed out briefly before the wound healed. The saliva that had come out of the gland had started dissolving Medic's scalpel and had pooled in the creature's mouth. Medic opened the creature's mouth and shone the bright, ceiling mounted, light into it. Adding some indicator fluid to the saliva, Medic watched as the fluid rapidly turned to a deep red before the saliva dissolved it.

Medic was surprised for the second time: he had never seen indicator fluid dissolved by an acid before. Medic jotted this down in his notebook before he snapped it shut. He needed to get rid of the creature before it became a hazard to him and the rest of the team.

Going into the corridor, Medic looked left and right for Pyro, before he went down into the residential area of the base. Medic went up to Pyro's bedroom and knocked on the door. There was no answer. Medic quietly opened the door and found that the room was empty, despite being a chaotic mess. On the wall was a gun rack with a variety of flamethrowers. Medic took one and smuggled it back to the surgery.

Outside the surgery doors was Engineer, waiting for Medic.

"Howdy doc; how's it going?"

"Ach, fine. What do you vant?" Medic asked impatiently.

"Dinner's just about to be served; Ah thought you might like to know."

Medic thanked Engineer for this and hid the flamethrower in the surgery. Admittedly, Pyro would notice the missing fuel, although Medic had noticed that the arsonist had been a bit forgetful recently, so Pyro would probably put the missing fuel down to that.

After hiding the flamethrower, Medic went to join the rest of the team for dinner.

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**A/N** Another chapter; hope you enjoyed it. Medic might regret his actions sooner or later.


	3. After Dinner

Medic, feeling decidedly grumpy, was back in his lab, Pyro's flamethrower at the ready. He didn't know what it was called, and frankly, he didn't give a care. Medic aimed the nozzle of the flamethrower at the creature and pulled the trigger. The creature squealed and writhed around in pain as its body was consumed by fire.

When Medic finished, the creature had become little more than a small pile of organic slag that stank the lab out. Some of the creature's saliva had dissolved a hole in the table and had begun to drip down onto the floor. The creature's remains were tossed into a biohazard bin, and Medic went to return Pyro's flamethrower as stealthily as he could.

When the deed was done, Medic went to discuss the results with Engineer, collecting his notebook on the way. When the German had found the Texan, Engineer sniffed and almost brought up the casserole that the team had had for dinner.

"Phew, doc, you smell like you could use a shower. What happened?" asked Engineer.

"I had that foul creature incinerated." replied Medic.

"Whadda you do that for?"

"The creature vas a threat to us, as are the rest of those things. I fear that ve are too late."

"How come?"

"Have you noticed how the rest of the team are acting? Pyro's forgetfulness and Heavy's docility, for example. Before, Pyro seemed to have a good memory, but now it can't even remember its way around the base. Heavy used to be difficult to budge if he had his mind made up, and yet he has become a pushover."

"That kinda makes sense. They started acting weird when those creatures musta appeared in the basement. What makes us immune, though?"

Medic facepalmed.

"Engineer, vhat do we both have in common?" Medic mumbled through his glove.

"We both work for BLU?" Engineer asked in a voice that said he had no idea what the answer was.

"No, Svinehund. Your Dispenser and my backpack both contain the same technology. You tend to camp by your Dispenser and are healed by it, vhile I get vhatever fumes that escape from my backpack. I think that this is vhy ve are the least affected."

"Some sorta virus?"

"Maybe, or psionics. I doubt a virus, though, because of Pyro's hazmat suit, and I am unable to determine psionics, so I shall look for a virus tomorrow."

Medic began to detail his findings to Engineer, who quietly understood what the German had to say. When Medic had finished, Engineer silently wished that they could have kept it as a weapon against Her, or even RED, but kept his opinions to himself.

"Ya know, doc, I think this is going to get out of hand. Maybe we should get a second opinion."

"From who?"

"Ya know, doc. _Ya know_, doc."

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**A/N** Things start to warm up.


	4. Second Opinion

At 6:59 pm the following day, Medic and Engineer were in the lobby of the BLU base. Not only was it dark outside, as Medic had brought along a stupidly dim lamp, but it was raining quite heavily, so the two BLU mercenaries had put on waterproofs. Medic had his notebook with him, as well as several blood samples.

Medic's analysis of the blood from several of his teammates concluded that there was no current virus, but there was an increased white blood cell count, indicating that there may have been. What was interesting was abnormal hormone levels that varied between all of the men (and Pyro) examined, and both Medic and Engineer were biased towards a possible cause.

"This is one of your vorst ideas, Herr Engineer." grumbled Medic as the two left their base.

"Like Ah said, Doc, we need a second opinion. We are slightly biased towards those creatures in the basement." replied Engineer.

Medic grumbled about Engineer's use of "slightly" as the two men trudged away from their base to the RED one opposite. When they reached their destination, Engineer knocked on the door. This was answered by the RED Engineer.

"Howdy boys, what can Ah help ya with?" questioned the RED Texan.

"I am looking for my RED counterpart. I vish to discuss something vith him." replied Medic, in a rather unamused voice.

"Well come on right in. Would either of ya like something ta drink?"

The RED Engineer rattled off a short list of alcohol. Medic stated he would like some Rheinhessen Auslese, whilst the BLU Engineer went for BLU Streak. The RED Engineer went into the Beer Fridge in the canteen, pulled out two bottles of BLU Streak, and tossed one to his BLU counterpart and shoved the other in the pocket of his overalls. The RED mercenary then went into a wine cupboard, took out a bottle of Rheinhessen Auslese, and sent it to the BLU Medic with a wine glass and a Russian Army Knife.

"Ya know, we had a little wager going on over here whether or not one or more of you boys showed up within a year of Gray's defeat. Ah'm in to collect twenty grand." claimed the RED Engineer.

"To simplify things should they come to it, Herrs Engineer and Engineer, I am going to refer to the RED Engineer as Dell and the BLU Engineer as Conagher." stated Medic.

"Sounds good ta me." chirped Dell.

"Same 'ere." seconded Conagher.

The two BLU mercenaries started their drinks as the trio entered the RED team's recreational area. Dell called out to his teammates.

"Hey boys, look who's turned up."

This was met with a few sighs from those who had just lost the RED Team Wager, and positive vocalisations from the rest of the team. Soldier stood up from his seat on a wooden stool, went over to the two BLU mercenaries, and shook their hands.

"We don't like having to fight BLU again, and _I know_ you two maggots don't like having to fight RED again either! This is a good day: a visit from our comrades-in-arms from the Robot Wars! No matter what _She_ makes us do, you two have shown us your worth!" shouted Soldier.

Medic and Conagher took this appreciation from Soldier as the compliment it was.

"Ja, ve do not like having to fight you again, and certainly not for _Her_." replied the BLU Medic.

"Blackmail…it is an interesting thing, is it not?" asked Spy, rhetorically, fondling a cigarette by the fireplace.

"Shuddup Frenchie." snarled Soldier.

Spy imitated shock at Soldier's comment, and then snorted in contempt.

"Doc, your counterpart wanted to see you 'bout something." Dell called out to the RED Medic, who stood up from his place on a worn sofa, took his counterpart aside where they could talk quietly. Soldier went back to his stool, while Dell leaned against the wall opposite Spy, and Conagher used the Three Second Rule to sit in the seat that the RED Medic had vacated.

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Away from the others, the two Medics were discussing the BLU Medic's findings. The RED Medic was looking through the BLU Medic's journal.

"Adolfus, vhat have you got yourself into?" queried the RED Medic.

"Decide for yourself, Fritz. All I know about these creatures is in that notebook." replied the BLU Medic, sipping his wine.

Fritz sighed. Sometimes, just sometimes, his twin brother Adolfus Günsche could get himself into serious trouble, and it was up to him, Fritz Günsche, to get him out of it. Fritz's mind wandered back to that incident in Berlin with the Russians. No. Fritz quickly stopped thinking about that particular event, and thought heavily about the matter at hand.

After a few minutes of intense concentration, Fritz calmly spoke.

"Aldolfus, all of us are in serious trouble. Finish your wine; I'll rouse the others."

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**A/N** Things are leading up to a climax. Maybe. But what are RED going to do? Reviews, as always, are appreciated.


	5. Attack by Night

**A/N **Mayday, Mayday. Mah ship is takin' terrible, terrible damage.

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The RED team, recently informed of the infestation in the BLU base, raided their armoury. Although both teams were allowed to keep a limited number of weapons out of the armoury, the funkier and vastly more dangerous stuff was always in the armoury. As was normal, the Administrator had it securely locked it remotely from her office, but this was short work for Demoman and Spy working together to blast the doors open and stop the Administrator from knowing what was going on.

Staring inside, the RED team saw that all of their weapons had been removed from the armoury.

"Damn it, men, _She_ got here before us." swore Soldier.

"Do you think I would let that foul woman take _all_ of the weapons here?" asked Spy, who motioned to Heavy.

Heavy went over to a set of shelves, obviously positioned over a metal hatch, and pushed it aside. Spy undid the lock on the hatch and opened it. Underneath this was a large box that would fit quite a few large guns. Heavy cracked this open. Inside was a note, and nothing else. Spy read the note.

"I take it that it was left by _Her_." stated Adolfus.

Spy nodded. Dell spoke.

"Well, what's it say?"

"Nice try." replied the Frenchman.

Spy went over to the solitary air vent on the wall. He effortlessly removed the cover and took a key from inside. Spy then went back to the hole that the weapons cache should have been in, and inserted the key into a keyhole in the side of the hole only he knew about. It clicked open, and Spy smiled.

Spy stepped aside, and Heavy got into the hole. He pushed against the floor, which lifted up and revealed an even bigger box. The ten other mercenaries avoided the false floor to see what was inside this new box as Heavy cracked it open.

Inside were a selection of yet-unreleased weapons, and another note. Spy read this aloud.

"It says: I'll let you get away with this one. Once." said the Frenchman.

At this point, the eleven mercenaries helped themselves to the weapons inside, the RED team going for the weapons they were most suited towards, and the two BLU mercenaries taking from the remainder, which meant that Adolfus had an SMG and Conagher had a grenade launcher. Kitted out, the group of men and Pyro left the RED base.

* * *

Outside, the rain had stopped and the night had brightened up a bit, which was preferable to the prevailing conditions earlier. The group slunk over to the BLU base, where Conagher let them in. Conagher proceeded to lead the group to the basement, avoiding where the rest of the BLU team were known to congregate in the evenings. The entrance to the basement was barricaded from the inside to prevent any interference from the oblivious BLU team.

Once in the basement, the extent to which the creatures had established themselves was revealed to the RED Medic, who wasn't expecting that many creatures, and the rest of the RED team, who discovered precisely what they were up against.

A slow advance through the basement followed this revelation, the creatures being quickly burnt away by Pyro, although the men had trouble because of the regenerative abilities of the creatures. Both Medics, because their healing abilities were almost completely unneeded, were able to unleash their sadistic sides, while a sentry set up by Dell was extremely useful but a hazard to both Adolfus and Conagher.

Covered in the green blood of the creatures, the men stopped for a short break, while Pyro continued its happy advance, coming back only for ammo from Dell's dispenser.

"I was not expecting this." rumbled Heavy.

"None of us were, Fatty, apart from the Doc and the BLU blokes." interjected Sniper.

"I was expecting the glories of battle! I got what I came for! Although this does mean that the Art of Fortress needs revising!" shouted Soldier.

Adolfus and Conagher glared at Soldier; the BLU team had never forgiven him for writing and subsequently publishing the Art of Fortress. Spy lit a cigarette and sulked in a corner – his suit had been splattered with blood and would never be the same again.

"I think the toys are fun." slurred Demoman, reloading an extremely overpowered grenade launcher with eight barrels.

The others nodded. The new weapons in Spy's stash were better than the ones they tended to use on the battlefield.

After about five minutes rest, the group continued their fight against the creatures, in a frenzy of bullets, grenades, needles, rockets, and shotgun shells. The group, although they were enjoying the killing spree, were reminded of the Robot wars, more so by the combination of RED and BLU.

At the end of the basement, the group found Pyro, who was waiting for them. Relieved that their work in the BLU basement was over, the RED team, along with Adolfus and Conagher, went back to the basement entrance. The barricade was removed, and Adolfus and Conagher told the BLU team, who had been trying to get into the basement, that they would reveal all the following morning. The rest of the BLU team dispersed, and both Adolfus and Conagher thanked the RED team for their involvement.

* * *

During the following week, Conagher was walking around the BLU basement, tidying up the mess that had been left behind by the infestation. As he went by a section of wall, he stopped and walked back to examine it.

A purple blob hung on the wall, with a barren wasteland visible through it. On the other side of the creature was a message in English.

_To whoever finds this message;_

_We sent our young to Earth, not to invade, but to flee. We were almost wiped out in a battle here, and those left went to make a new life elsewhere. One remains here, who will wage a war of attrition on those who almost wiped us out, and our leader has resigned, going to the stars. We may never encounter him again._

_Please, remember that the oblivious strong will triumph over, and maybe destroy, the weak unless something is done to make the strong realise what it is they do. We hope you do not make the same mistakes as our aggressors._

_Where we have sent our young to, we have attempted to prevent those we live beneath from killing them. However, we cannot reach two of them. We believe this to be the disruptive effect from the technology they work beside and with. We fear that they may finish the job of our aggressors._

The note went further, but the BLU Engineer stopped here, as Conagher had realised that he and the others involve in the purging the previous week had wiped out the young of a sentient race, and this sickened him to the core. It shook him tremendously, and he decided upon a course of action that would have an enormous implication for both teams. Conagher would take the fight to _Her_.

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**A/N** It isn't over yet.


	6. The Barren Plain

Two jets flew overhead. Both the RED and BLU teams were currently advancing across a barren plain, and had only been able to hurl themselves into a conveniently placed ditch to hide themselves a few seconds before they were spotted. Whilst the mercenaries were grateful they had escaped being spotted, some pondered about the convenient placement of the ditch, and how it was right there when they needed it. The BLU Pyro hung up a lampshade on a nearby shrub.

Conagher, although he hadn't mentioned the note he had seen on the creature's planet, had told the others on his team that he wanted to rebel against the Administrator. This was well received – his team-mates had liked being blackmailed by the Administrator as much as Conagher, which was to say not at all. Spy agreed to liaise with the RED team, as he could do so without the Administrator knowing what he was up to.

During these liaisons, the BLU Spy had discovered that the only reason that Fritz behaved like a lunatic was so that the Administrator and Miss Pauling would leave him in peace to work out a way of escaping. After a few modifications of his plans, they had something that both teams could use to eliminate the Administrator.

However, the Administrator, knowing both teams' resent of her, had remotely disconnected respawn when the two teams took a collective unauthorised absence from their bases. It paid for someone in her position to make such a decision, and it was a decision that was the two teams strongly believed had been made.

While the two teams were in the ditch, the mercenaries, save the Pyros, took swigs from whatever drinking implements they had, be it a bottle, canteen, or a can, because of the heat. The RED Sniper also took this opportunity to fill up a jar of Jarate, although he had the decency to do it away from the others.

When the deed was done, the mercenaries moved onwards. At the other end of the plains, the Administrator had her little tower from which she controlled the world between two natural stone pillars. Between the mercenaries and the tower, there didn't seem to be the defences that the Administrator would have in place. Dell was thinking about this, before he suddenly realised.

"Hey boys! _She_ might have mined this entire area!" shouted the RED Texan.

Everybody stopped. In a matter of seconds, both Soldiers shouted that they send the two Scouts running ahead, dragging a long piece of wood behind them, which would detonate any mines, and the death of either or both Scouts wouldn't be any sort of loss to the world. Both Scouts verbally objected to this, although the other mercenaries, possibly because of their strong desire to breath during the following week, bravely agreed with the two Soldiers.

The Soldiers' idea was quickly implemented, despite the lack of any noticeable piece of wood that could be used. The Scouts were whipped, but they didn't move. The RED Spy sighed.

"Miss Pauling is at the other end of this plain. I will help the one who gets their first improve their romantic situation with Miss Pauling." stated Spy

"I ain't an idiot, Spy." replied the BLU Scout. He paused for a few seconds, his feelings for Miss Pauling surging. "How long's she gonna be there for?"

"Long enough for you to run there."

"I'm in!" yelled the BLU Scout, running off towards the Administrator's tower.

The RED Scout saw his BLU counterpart charge off, before he exclaimed "Hey, she's mine!", and dashed after the BLU Scout, straight into a landmine.

Standing there, in the bloody rain of the RED Scout's gibs, the RED Soldier chuckled.

"That's one less horror in the world. Engineer, you and I have done some charitable work."

"I also contributed. I will not be left out. My charitable work is over there, finding us a way to the Administrator." said the BLU Soldier.

Another landmine went off, a respectable distance away, signalling that the BLU Scout had expired in a glorious explosion.

"I stand corrected." the BLU Solder quickly added, having spoken too soon.

Conagher pulled out a blueprint from his Ideas Tube, before he started assembling a long handled metal detector. This received some good attention from the other mercenaries, although some said they could attempt using other classes as minesweepers, glaring at the Spies. Before long, Conagher's metal detector was completed, and the mercenaries proceeded towards the Administrator's tower.

Later that day, the mercenaries staggered up to the Administrator's tower. The two Heavies leaned on it, and it fell over, revealing itself a large cardboard cutout. This was shockingly received, and the BLU Heavy walked backwards into one of the large stone pillars nearby. Rather than getting a jab in the back from the stone, the pillar enveloped him. The Heavy stopped, and cried out to his comrades about this. Pulling aside the curtain he had backed into, the Heavy revealed a large locked door. The RED Demoman was about to liberally coat the door in explosives, when the BLU Spy stopped him, and did some lock picking.

Twelve minutes and 35 locks later, the door swung open. A solitary stairwell went downwards, along with a sign that said Chapter 7 at the bottom of the stairwell. The Administrator was also down there, and so was the fate of both her and our heroic mercenaries, bent on toppling this evil woman dictator. Like wolves unto sheep, the mercenaries leapt down the stairs, eager to get into the next chapter.

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**A/N** Sorry for the awfully long delay; I hope this makes up for it. Chapter 7 could be a bit of a climax. Hopefully, lots of fighting, pain, and death. Who will triumph?


	7. Chapter 7 At Last

Going down the stairs, the mercenaries found that it was rather a long way to Chapter Seven, and were starting to wonder if there was a shortcut to it. Before long, however, they reached the bottom of the stairwell, which had a door marked "Chapter 7", and the mercenaries went through.

On the other side of the door, in a poorly lit tunnel, was an electric tram and a long stretch of track, which went off into the murky darkness. A sign pointed that way, with a comment that the secret entrance to the Administrator's tower was seven miles further down the track.

The mercenaries leapt on the tram and pushed a power lever as far forward as possible. The tram lurched forward at a slow speed, and they were off. Both Soldiers held their shotguns at the ready, wary that the Administrator would pull a big trick on them. Some of the other mercenaries, such as the RED Sniper and the BLU Demoman, nodded off.

Seven miles later, the RED Soldier spotted a small doorway off to the right-hand side of the tunnel. He immediately jumped off and kicked down the door. On the other side was a short flight of stairs upwards. The other mercenaries joined him, having stopped the tram.

The group went up the stairs but were confronted by a simple locked door. The RED Soldier put his shotgun to the lock and fired, as he wasn't prepared to wait for either of the Spies to pick the lock. The door swung open, revealing a car park.

"This must be _Her_ tower." whispered Conagher.

Dell went over to a map on a nearby wall and studied it.

"Boys, we're in the sub-basement; She is on the sixth floor, assumin' a ground floor for that woman is the same as a first floor for me. There are other levels above the office, but this map says the office is on the sixth floor."

Both Spies groaned; they had hated coming down the stairs after the decoy tower, and now they had to climb seven flights. Fortunately for them, the BLU Heavy had spotted a couple of lifts. The RED team went in one, the BLU team in the other. After about a minute of lift music, the teams arrived on what was labelled on the map as the fifth floor.

When the doors opened, the team saw an execution chamber. They quickly closed the doors, and the RED Spy asked Dell if there was a room marked "Sewage Overflow Containment". Dell responded that he had, and it was in the basement.

The RED Soldier climbed through the ceiling of the lift, and boldly walked over to the other lift, forcing a ceiling panel open. The RED Soldier stuck his head through the hole and shouted to the BLU team that they were going down to the basement.

Both lifts went back down again, the RED Soldier still on top of the BLU team's lift. When they stopped, he climbed down, and all of the mercenaries exited the lifts.

They were confronted with a waiting room and a large office, with a smaller office off to the side. The BLU Spy went over to the small office and started picking the lock, before he realised it was already open. He pushed the door quietly, and the Administrator was sitting at her desk. The BLU Spy pulled out his Ambassador and aimed at the Administrator's head. He fired, the bullet flying towards the Administrator's head, and hitting her just behind the left ear.

The Administrator fell forward, blood flowing from the wound. Miss Pauling, in the corner, pulled out her pistol and started firing at the BLU Spy. He fell, and was dragged aside by Adolfus, who began healing him. The RED Heavy revved up Sasha, and went inside the office, and fired upon Miss Pauling, who flopped to the floor. Her dying whisper was: "We marked the office on the fifth floor; how did you find us?"

"The Evil Overlord List." rumbled the RED Heavy.

Miss Pauling died, and the mercenaries retreated to the lobby. They had just killed two women, including the most powerful woman in the world. The teams were now stuck, with no idea about what they would do. They couldn't go home, as the Administrator's minions would track them down if they did so. They couldn't stay on Mann's land, either. They had wanted to be free, and now they had their freedom.

Most of the mercenaries got up to leave, except the BLU Spy. When the other mercenaries looked to him, he shook his head. The other mercenaries left, and the BLU Spy lit a cigarette. He took several long drags of it, glared at it in contempt, and chucked it to one side, landing in a waste paper basket by a chair. The Spy went into the Administrator's office, and looked around himself before he took out his Ambassador, put it to his head, and fired. The bin, and in turn, the chair and the lobby, caught fire from the cigarette, eventually burning all evidence of what had occurred.

The rest of the mercenaries were never seen again, but reports of their activities, mainly the Soldiers but occasionally one of the other classes, never ceased.

* * *

**A/N** That ending was a pig to write, with less violence (and hats) than I had previously hoped for. Anyway, reviews, as always, are appreciated and welcomed.


End file.
